With the losses of Nick Gates to the Commanders and Jon Feliciano to the 49ers, the NY Giants currently have no centers on the roster. This is not ideal for general manager Joe Schoen, but he’s already hard at work trying to fix the problem. Both in free agency and the NFL Draft, Schoen will be eyeing guys for Big Blue.
Well, things have already gotten started on Wednesday. According to Giants insider Jordan Raanan, center J.C. Hassenauer is in East Rutherford for a visit with the front office.
The former Steelers offensive lineman appeared in all 17 games for Pittsburgh last season. Now, he’s looking for a new place to call home.
The Giants have center J.C. Hassenauer in for a visit on Wednesday, per source. Spent the past four years with the Steelers. Appeared in 45 games with seven starts.
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) March 22, 2023
Giants looking to add depth at center after allowing Jon Feliciano and Nick Gates to walk.#giants #steelers #NFL
Former Pittsburgh Steelers center J.C. Hassenauer would be a great depth signing
Hassenauer isn’t expected to be a starter next season, but he’d surely provid some much-needed depth for the G-Men, if Schoen were to finalize a contract for him. As things stand, a lot of people think that young offensive lineman Ben Bredeson could step in and see significant time at center for Big Blue in 2023.
Last year, Bredeson appeared in 11 games for NY, posting eight starts at guard. Meanwhile for Hassenauer, the 6-2, 295-pounder didn’t start a game for Pittsburgh last season, but he indeed suited up for every regular season game.
Hassenauer was a standout offensive lineman at Alabama in college, but he didn’t hear his name called in the NFL Draft. He wound up making his debut for the Steelers in 2020, posting four starts and appearing in 15 games. Then in ’21, he added three more starts for Mike Tomlin and 13 appearances.
Again, Hassenauer won’t be looked at to be a week-to-week starter for Brian Daboll and the Giants, but this squad still needs to add depth for the offensive line this offseason. Despite this not being a blockbuster move if Hassenauer does put the pen to paper with NY, it could prove to be an important one for Schoen and Co.
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